Growing internet and data communications are resulting in the need for greater numbers and types of optical components within expanding optical networks. DWDM systems, or any system that utilizes light to transmit information, utilize a variety of components for creating, transmitting, manipulating and detecting light. Such optical device components, also referred to as optoelectronic or photonic components, often comprises at least a portion that is transmissive to light at particular wavelengths. Fibers and planar light guides are examples of passive light transmissive optical components within an optical network. However, light manipulators (components that modify, filter, amplify, etc. light within the optical network) also often have portions that are transmissive to light, as often do photodetectors and light emittors.
Regardless of the type of optical device component, it is usually desirable that a material is used that is highly transmissive to the wavelengths used to transmit information through the optical network. In addition to low optical absorbance, the material should preferably have low polarization dependent loss and have low birefringence and anisotropy, and low stress. It is also desirable that the material be easy to deposit or form, preferably at a high deposition rate and at a relatively low temperature. Once deposited or formed, it is desirable that the material can be easily patterned, preferably directly patterned without the need for photoresist and etching steps, and preferably patterned with small feature sizes if needed. Once patterned, the material should preferably have low surface and/or sidewall roughness. The material should also preferably be hydrophobic to avoid uptake of moisture once installed and in use, and be stable with a relatively high glass transition temperature (not degrade or otherwise physically and/or chemically change upon further processing or when in use).
Often, current materials used for making optical device components have some, but not all, of these characteristics. For example, inorganic materials such as silica are relatively stable, have relatively high glass transition temperatures have relatively low optical loss. However, silica materials often require higher deposition temperatures (limiting substrates and components on the substrates) and have lower deposition rates and cannot be directly patterned. Organic materials such as polymers can be deposited at lower temperatures and at higher deposition rates, but are relatively unstable and have lower glass transition temperatures. What are needed are materials for optical device components that have a larger number of the preferred characteristics set forth above.
A method comprises reacting a compound of the general formula R14-mMOR3m wherein m is an integer from 2 to 4, R1 is selected from alkyl, alkenyl, aryl, alkynyl or epoxy, and wherein R1 is nonfluorinated, or fully or partially fluorinated; OR3 is alkoxy; and M is an element selected from group 14 of the periodic table; with a compound of the general formula R2M1 wherein R2 is selected from alkyl, alkenyl, aryl, alkynyl or epoxy, and wherein R2 is at least partially fluorinated; and M1 is an element from group I of the periodic table; so as to make a compound of the general formula R14-mMOR3m-1R2.
A similar method of the invention comprises reacting a compound of the general formula R14-mMOR3m-nXn wherein m is an integer from 2 to 4, and n is an integer from 0 to 3 and is not greater than m; R1 is selected from alkyl, alkenyl, aryl, alkynyl or epoxy, and wherein R1 is nonfluorinated, or fully or partially fluorinated; OR3 is alkoxy; X is a halogen; and M is an element selected from group 14 of the periodic table; with a compound of the general formula R2M1, wherein R2 is selected from alkyl, alkenyl, aryl, alkynyl or epoxy, and wherein R2 is at least partially fluorinated; and M1 is an element from group I of the periodic table; so as to make a compound of the general formula R2MR14-mOR3m-nXn-1. These compounds thus formed can be further reacted to attach an additional Rx group, or hydrolyzed, alone or with one or more similar compounds, to form a material having a molecular weight of from 500 to 10,000, which material can be deposited on various substrates as a coating or deposited and patterned for a waveguide or other optical device components.